From our “You Can’t Make This Stuff Up” Department…
Francis Concerned:
‘They’re Counting Rosaries!’
Poor Jorge Bergoglio. Poor “Pope” Francis. Most of the world believes him to be the Pope of the Catholic Church, including the majority of those who consider themselves Catholic Traditionalists or Traditional Catholics. So some of these latter wanted to give their “Pope” a nice spiritual bouquet to show their love and loyalty, but they forgot that the recipient of this bouquet isn’t a Catholic and so he doesn’t know what to do with it. In an anecdote the “Holy Father” himself related, upon his election as Francis, he got a letter from one of those (his words) “restorationist groups” in Buenos Aires, telling him: “Your Holiness, we offer you this spiritual treasure: 3,525 rosaries.”
For a Catholic, that is wonderful news. How many graces must have been unlocked through so many Rosaries prayed by faithful souls! What a blessing!
That’s how a Catholic reacts. Mr. Bergoglio reacted differently. Instead of being humbled at this kindness, gratefully receiving the bouquet, and perhaps offering some prayers in return, knowing what a wonderful gift it is to receive over 3,500 Rosaries, Francis says that this bouquet is evidence of a “Pelagian current” and it “concerned” him because “one feels as if one goes back 60 years! Before the Council… One feels in 1940…. Why don’t they say, ‘we pray for you, we ask…’, but this thing of counting…” (Address to CLAR on June 6, 2013).
Yes, “this thing of counting”…. It’s actually how a Catholic spiritual bouquet works. In case you think Francis is sounding like a Protestant here, it’s because he is one. In fact, this is the same Bergoglio who used to send people to a Lutheran layman to get an “exorcism”. So what do you expect? (What? Michael Voris didn’t cover this on The Vortex??)
It is candid moments like this one that reveal who a person really is or what he really thinks. No one thought this would be reported in the press, and CLAR (Confederación Latinoamericana y Caribeña de Religiosos y Religiosas) expressed its regret that it was published (see apology under “2nd Update” here). So this is an insightful glimpse into the real Francis, about whom we’ve been reporting since Day 1 – see our Francis page here. (In the meantime, we’re still waiting for “Father Z” [Mr. John Zuhlsdorf] to provide some damage control he usually issues on his blog at this point in time.)
This embarrassing remark on the part of Mr. Bergoglio is yet another piece of evidence that the usual suspects in the semi-traditionalist enterprise (Ferrara, Vennari [in part], Salza, Gruner, Matt, Zuhlsdorf, Voris, etc.) are misleading their readers by their constant coloring and spinning of reality in these most serious matters. They do not go by principles and facts to arrive at a sound conclusion, but rather have a prepared, pre-held conclusion to which they then seek to make the evidence fit.
So, for example, on March 14, 2013, in a snippet titled “Pope Francis: The Marian Dimension”, U.S.-based attorney and semi-traditionalist kingpin Christopher Ferrara attempted to persuade his readers that “Pope” Francis held a “Marian piety of the most traditional sort”. What did Ferrara base this laughable claim on? The mere fact that Francis’ first act the day after his election was to visit the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome, to pray there and to put a bouquet of flowers in front of the statue of the Blessed Mother. This act alone made Ferrara pen the following lines:
“That the new Pope’s first devotional act was to visit the world’s oldest Marian church in order to venerate a Marian icon of such august provenance evidences a Marian piety of the most traditional sort. In these early stages of the new pontificate, we cannot overlook the Marian dimension of the former Archbishop of Buenos Aires.”
Ah, yes, you see, this act “evidences” not just a devotion to the Blessed Mother (which would be the most one could objectively conclude from it, but even that only by ignoring other evidence), but, even more so, “a Marian piety of the most traditional sort“. This simply has nothing to do with reality. It is spin, nothing but spin, by a lawyer whose job it is to get people excited about the new “Pope” and “Fr.” Gruner’s Fatima apostolate. That’s all. It is not based on a calm and objective examination of the relevant facts. (For a prior example of how Chris Ferrara spun reality on Ratzinger, only to be refuted afterwards by Ratzinger himself, see our essay No Friend of Fatima.)
Now, of course, Ferrara and his fellow-spinmeisters have egg on their face. The “Pope” with the “Marian piety of the most traditional sort” has revealed himself to be clueless about traditional Catholic devotions and customs (the counting of prayers for a spiritual bouquet) which to him are signs of a “Pelagian current” by people stuck in the 1940s who – horror of horrors! – “count” the Rosaries they pray for someone so they can tell him how many Rosaries are being offered for him. And this is the man “Fr.” Gruner hopes is the “Pope who will consecrate Russia” (see this video beginning at the 10:53 mark). You just can’t make this stuff up!
Of course, all of this embarrassment for the semi-traditionalists could have been avoided, had they only reported on the real Bergoglio right from the start and allowed the evidence to rule their conclusions instead of the other way around. But Our Blessed Lord counseled us: “Let them alone: they are blind, and leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the pit” (Matthew 15:14). And this is exactly what is going on here. Compare the stories, links, and commentaries you get here at Novus Ordo Watch with the information you get from sites like the Fatima Center, The Remnant, ChurchMilitant.TV, etc., and ask yourself who is giving you the real scoop on what is going on with the Novus Ordo Church and its leaders.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam — all for the greater glory of God!
See Also:
- Pope Leo XIII’s 11 encyclicals on the Holy Rosary (here we go counting again!)
- “Francis the Blind” by Tom Droleskey
- BAM! The Vortex is a Sham
Image source: shutterstock.com
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Francis Bergolio said he prays the Rosary every day, how does that square with one the promises of the Rosary that those who recite the Rosary will be aided by the Blessed Mother at the time of death. I know people who support public adultery pray the Rosary.
Clearly one can pray the rosary and wear the brown scapular without being a good Catholic. These devotions are powerful means of grace even in the hands of obstinate sinners, but it would be presumptuous to lead a bad life and expect to be saved. From St. Louis de Montfort (link):
From St. Alphonsus Liguori (link):
Thanks a lot. I sure will go back and read these books again. Also on the 41st Rose of The Secret of Rosary St. Louis De Montfort said that one who is mortal sin and desires not come out of it should not pray the Rosary because the Rosary would become the weapon of destruction instead of help from Mary for that sinner. But the bottom line is the promise is to those who simply recite the Rosary every day to obtain grace at the time of death. Another thing is I know people who pray the Rosary with the intention of exclusive temporal needs not spiritual desire such as salvation. There is similar issue with the Brown Scapular. Thanks and God Bless!